The mayor of Île-Saint-Denis, in Seine-Saint-Denis, Mohamed Gnabaly, has decided to close the Moroccan stand at the “Station Afrique”, the site of the Olympic Games celebrations, considering that the ” neutrality rules ” were not respected. This decision was judged “ unilateral and arbitrary » by the Moroccan consulate.
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The city ” had to inform the Moroccan representative yesterday morning of the end of the occupation agreement which linked our city to the Moroccan embassy Morocco as part of Station Afrique “, a site which highlights “African athletes, artists, cultures and peoples ” during the Olympic and Paralympic Games, according to a statement released Sunday.
THE “ neutrality commitments ” (…) have been ” seriously called into question on Thursday ” during the evening in honor of Morocco, assures the left-wing mayor without a label. “ Singer Saida Charaf spoke twice in front of the public “THE Western Sahara is Moroccan, thank you President Macron,” according to the mayor’s story.
” The spontaneous expression of an opinion by Ms. Charaf does not constitute a politicization of the Games, nor an obstacle to commitments to neutrality. “, reacted the consulate of the Kingdom of Morocco in Villemonble (Seine-Saint-Denis) on X, judging ” this unilateral and arbitrary termination “.
In a letter addressed to the king Mohammed VI on the occasion of the anniversary of his inauguration 25 years ago and made public on Tuesday, Emmanuel Macron considered that ” the present and future of Western Sahara are part of Moroccan sovereignty “.
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Without expressly recognizing the ” Moroccanness ” of Western Sahara, this position caused Algeria to react strongly, which decided to withdraw its ambassador stationed in Paris. This decision goes beyond a simple recall of an ambassador for consultations. It is a reduction in Algeria’s diplomatic representation in Paris.
Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony, is controlled largely by Morocco – which proposed an autonomy plan under its sovereignty in 2007 – but claimed by the Sahrawi separatists of the Polisario Front, who are demanding a referendum on self-determination. The latter was planned during a ceasefire in 1991, but has never been organized. The UN considers this territory, with its rich fish waters and significant phosphate reserves, as a “ non-self-governing territory “.
Gnabaly, who assured that he wanted to “ ensure neutrality » around the issue of Western Sahara intervened on stage during the concert and was « booed “, according to a video seen by AFP. ” Faced with inaction ” And ” no excuse ” representatives of the Kingdom of Morocco, he decided to close their stand.
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